Source – CC0 License
It’s always been your dream to purchase a luxury car and call it your own. You want to spend weekends polishing it and making all the neighbours green with envy. It fills your heart with joy as you imagine letting the engine roar down the motorway or seeing people stare open-mouthed when they walk by.
So, when you can finally afford a luxury car, you’re chomping at the bit to buy it. You get tunnel vision – but there are things about owning a luxury car you must know before you buy. Most of these are maintenance-orientated as looking after a luxury car is slightly more important than a standard car thanks to the costs involved.
Nevertheless, you must be aware of them or you could make costly mistakes when your luxury vehicle arrives!
You need luxury car insurance
You can’t take out a normal car insurance policy for luxury cars. Instead, you need luxury or high-value car insurance. This is specifically designed to cover all the unique issues posed by expensive vehicles. For instance, there’s a bigger chance your car will be broken into or vandalised when it’s expensive and looks luxurious. Therefore, your insurance premium must cover this and provide enough coverage to deal with any repairs or replacements.
The insurance package will almost certainly be full coverage – you can’t get away with just liability insurance for a luxury vehicle. Also, be sure to check the cost of insurance before buying your car; it might surprise you how much you’ll be paying per month.
All repairs must be done by manufacturer-approved mechanics
If something breaks or needs replacing on a cheap car, you can take it to any local garage and they’ll fix it. This is not advisable with luxury cars. They could be made using special materials like carbon fibre, so they must be fixed by manufacturer-approved mechanics.
If you’re driving around in a Porsche 911 GT3, you need to find a Porsche-approved body shop for all repairs. If you own a Ferrari F430, it has to be serviced and repaired by an approved Ferrari workshop. You couldn’t take your Porsche to a Ferrari garage, or vice versa. Never risk bringing your luxury car to independent garages either; as fantastic as the mechanics might be, they’ve not been cleared to work on your car by the manufacturer. This can lead to warranty issues as well as a greater risk of things going wrong.
Speak to the manufacturer before cleaning the inside
Don’t start scrubbing the inside of your luxury vehicle with the same cleaning tools or solutions you’d use in a regular car. Many high-end cars will have special seat materials or trims that need to be cleaned in a specific way.
This should be outlined in the owner’s manual, but if you’re unsure it’s always best to contact the manufacturer. You can’t risk staining leather or damaging bits of hardwood dashboard trim!
Owning a luxury car is an experience you won’t be used to. Don’t assume it’s the same as owning and maintaining a “normal” car, because it isn’t! Make yourself aware of these vital things before making a luxury purchase.
